


True Love's Kiss

by alecmagnuslwb



Series: The Immortal Inquisitor and High Warlock of Alicante [20]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, M/M, Post-Canon, also the kids make an appearance, hurt/comfort sort of, malec's all encompassing love for one another
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-24
Updated: 2020-08-24
Packaged: 2021-03-06 21:00:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,564
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26085325
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alecmagnuslwb/pseuds/alecmagnuslwb
Summary: He tried it once before early in their relationship when Alec was just barely hanging on, but maybe, just maybe this time now that they're married and supposed to have this never-ending life together it will work.
Relationships: Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood
Series: The Immortal Inquisitor and High Warlock of Alicante [20]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1360348
Comments: 9
Kudos: 155





	True Love's Kiss

**Author's Note:**

> Writer’s Month day 24, prompt: True Love’s Kiss

Magnus drops the phone before Izzy can even finish her sentence, the choking sob that comes on the end of her saying Alec’s name is all he needs to hear. He’s conjuring up a portal as fast as he can explaining gently to the kids that daddy is very sick and they have to go to New York to take care of him.

Isabelle the angel that she is distracts the kids as soon as they arrive even with her tear stained cheeks. She gestures her head down to the end of the hall as she ushers all the kids in the opposite direction, taking little baby August in her arms.

He mouths a quiet thank you to her and goes into a run to get to the last door on the left. Catarina is already inside, Madzie, who it still startles Magnus is now all grown up, stands by her side hands out with palms spread wide, her waves of purple magic combining with Cat’s blue.

Underneath their magic is his husband, still and pale, a wide fading red gash on his bare chest. He freezes at the sight.

“He’s gonna be okay, Magnus,” Catarina says eyes and focus never leaving Alec.

“What do you need from me?” he says shaking out of his stupor and going to Alec’s bedside.

“Just make sure he knows you’re here,” she says through gritted teeth pushing another wave of healing magic into Alec.

Magnus nods pulling up a stool beside the bed, he grabs Alec’s hand immediately, swirling the wedding band on his ring finger nervously.

It’s minutes that feel like hours later when Catarina and Madzie are finished, the large gash and bruising all over his skin nothing but a memory. Madzie pulls up another stool beside Magnus and rests her head on his shoulder as Catarina explains his injuries.

He only hears bits and pieces of it, but when Catarina admits she’s not sure when or if he’ll wake up his head shoots up.

“What do you mean ‘if’?” he says holding back the tears that are threatening to spill.

“The demon that got ahold of him is very rare, there are only three known survivors who’ve been bitten and two of them never woke up again even after the venom was removed,” she says sadly. She walks over to his side putting both hands on his shoulders while Madzie reaches out gripping his arm.

They all three sit there quietly for a while the beep, beep, beep of Alec’s heart monitors the only thing filling the silence. Eventually Madzie lets out a quiet sob that she covers quickly, kissing Magnus on the cheek and running out of the room. He’s a little grateful that she leaves, because he knows that if she starts crying he’ll never be able to hold it together. Catarina stays a little longer taking Madzie vacated seat until eventually she reaches out a hand gently clasping where Magnus’ had is still joined with Alec’s for a moment before she leaves as well.

Alone Magnus finally feels a few tears escape from his eyes. He wipes them quickly with his free hand before scooting forward as close as he can get to Alec.

This can’t be happening. Not now, not ever. His husband is immortal now, that means he doesn’t have to lose him, doesn’t have to live without him.

But here he is lying still and looking like he’s already lost in front Magnus.

This feels worse than ever before, because he’s grown accustom to Alec being safe. He’s been in the field less and less since taking on his new leadership role and even less since they started adopting all their children. He works from home as often as he can, he plays the diplomat far more often than the soldier. He even jokes he’s grown rusty with a seraph blade.

What makes it even harder is the kids. Because if he doesn’t wake up he’ll have to go out there and explain to their kids why daddy won’t be coming home with them. He doesn’t know if his heart can handle that, can handle the shattered, devastated looks on their children’s sweet faces. He doesn’t want them to grown up without their dad, without the man who made the family they’ve built a reality for Magnus.

Magnus is terrified that if he loses Alec he’ll calcify, holding in his grief to stay brave in front of their children.

He was only out there today because of a wave of the flu that’s worked its way through his former Institute and he’d gone to help his sister.

“It’ll be fun,” he said kissing Magnus on the cheek on his way out the door. “Like old times, me and Iz.”

He shouldn’t have been out there today and now he might never wake up again. Now Magnus is sitting in what he’s pretty sure is the very same room Alec had to watch as Magnus nearly slipped away from him years ago after his body rejected Lorenzo’s magic watching Alec slip away from him.

“You don’t get to leave me, not ever, that’s the deal. That’s the promise you made,” Magnus says bowing his head to rest on their joined hands. “I can’t raise those seven-little devils without you. August hasn’t even gotten to know you yet. What the hell will I do without you Alexander?”

He cries for real then letting deep sobs rack his body, he cries for himself, but also for their children.

A little while later when Magnus has run out of tears to cry for the time being the door opens and closes quietly. He recognizes the click of Isabelle’s heels as she walks over pulling the second stool up and sitting beside him.

She reaches out a hand placing it on her brother’s knee before she speaks.

“He saved my life tonight, and at least a dozen others,” she says squeezing his knee once before pulling back and linking her arm through Magnus’ a solid comfort keeping him centered.

“Of course he did, that’s my Alexander,” he says equal parts sad and proud. He’s heard the story now about how Alec took on an unexpected demon single handedly after it nearly wiped out his entire team. Always a big damn hero.

“Where are the kids?” he asks after another few beats of silence.

“With Jace,” she says quietly as if her words would wake Alec, he wishes they could. “He’s feeding them s’mores and ice cream and performing Disney musical numbers to their delight. He figured no one could keep him distracted quite as well as he can and that that’s the place he was most needed for you both. So, you could have time to be with Alec once he wakes up.”

Sometimes, Magnus is very grateful that Jace Lightwood exists, but only sometimes.

“Isabelle, he might not,” he starts the words getting caught in his throat.

Isabelle shakes her head fiercely, her grip on Magnus’ arm getting a little tighter.

“He will,” she says confidently. “He didn’t work this hard to make sure he’d never have to leave you to be comatose the rest of his immortal life because of some unique dumbass demon. He won’t leave you like this, I know it.”

She says it with such fervor Magnus has no choice but to believe it.

She stays with him for a while after that quietly urging him to eat and drink something if he plans on staying awake all night. It’s almost thirty minutes to sunrise when she finally leaves his side, squeezing his shoulder one last time before she goes.

It feels all too much like the night he almost lost Alec before he even really got to have him. Isabelle his constant support as he fought for Alec to stay. The useless true love’s kiss he’d foolishly placed on Alec’s lips that had failed.

He gets up moving from the stool to sit on the edge of Alec’s bed. He trails one hand up and down Alec’s arm slowly while he moves the other to comb through his husband’s hair that somehow Magnus has convinced him not to cut for almost two months now loving the way the longer strands feel when he does this.

Usually Alec would stir, but he stays still. It’s worse than the night of the true love’s kiss, at least Alec had still been moving making some acknowledgement that he could feel and hear Magnus by his side. Now he’s just lifeless and Magnus feels useless.

He moves his hand down from his hair to brush across Alec’s lips, cold to the touch so unlike how they usually are.

 _What the hell,_ Magnus thinks leaning in and pressing his lips to Alec’s. Not only does the cold feel wrong, but the fact that Alec doesn’t instantly kiss back is just as hollowing.

He pulls back after a moment and watches.

Nothing. Of course. It didn’t work years ago, so of course it didn’t work today either.

“Such a fool,” he whispers to himself a rogue tear falling from his eye as he watches Alec for any movement. He places another soft slow kiss on his lips just because he can then starts to pull his face away and that’s when Alec’s pretty hazel eyes flutter open, pupils dilating and focusing on Magnus.

**Author's Note:**

> tumblr: [alecmagnuslwb](https://alecmagnuslwb.tumblr.com/)


End file.
